Amran backs halt to white sugar imports as output hits 2.8 million tons
Sugar cane farmers want the 2027 raw sugar import quota left unchanged to protect prices and keep harvests absorbed.
Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman supports stopping imports of white crystal sugar as long as domestic demand can be met by national output. The stance comes as 2026 sugar production is projected to reach at least 2.8 million tons, the highest in about a decade, according to Asosiasi Gula Indonesia. As the milling season nears its end, cane-based output is estimated at around 2.6 million-2.7 million tons. Asosiasi Gula Indonesia said imported sugar during a production upswing risks pressuring prices and disrupting absorption of farmers' harvests. APTRI has also asked that the 2027 quota for raw crystal sugar not be increased. The government links the higher output to a ratoon replanting program, expanded acreage, improved yields, mechanization and sugar mill revitalization to reach self-sufficiency in consumer sugar.